Cheaper 1,000km-plus BYD Seal 6 Touring could be on the way

BYD’s new Seal 6 range may not remain a two-model proposition for long, with the company confirming it has two additional variants waiting in the wings.

The Australian lineup currently pairs the entry-level Seal 6 Essential sedan, priced from $34,990 before on-road costs, with the more highly specified Seal 6 Touring Premium wagon at $39,990 before on-road costs.

Both use BYD’s fifth-generation DM-i plug-in hybrid technology and offer a claimed combined driving range of more than 1000km when starting with a fully charged battery and full 65-litre fuel tank.

Speaking with CarSauce at the Seal 6’s Australian launch, BYD and Denza Chief Product Officer Sajid Hasan confirmed the company has already prepared more versions of the sedan and wagon.

“We do have another two variants that are kind of ready to go, but it's just a matter of us waiting to see how the demand is for the existing variants,” Hasan said.

Hasan added: “We have an Essential and a Premium version of both the sedan and the touring, but just before launch, we decided to slim the lineup to make it a little bit simpler.”

Those comments strongly suggest BYD could add a more affordable Seal 6 Touring Essential and a better-equipped Seal 6 Premium sedan, although the company has not confirmed which variants will reach Australia or when they could arrive.

A Seal 6 Touring Essential would arguably be the more significant addition.
The wagon is already a relatively unusual proposition in Australia, combining the practicality of an estate body with plug-in hybrid power and a four-figure combined driving range.

The Touring body brings a longer-roof wagon profile to the Seal 6 range, giving BYD a family-focused alternative to the sedan at a time when mainstream wagons are rare in the Australian market.

A lower-priced version could also place greater pressure on conventional hybrid and petrol-powered family cars from established manufacturers including Toyota, Nissan and Mitsubishi.

The current Seal 6 sedan uses a 10.08kWh Blade Battery, providing up to 55km of electric range under the WLTP combined cycle.
Its front-mounted electric motor and 1.5-litre petrol engine produce combined outputs of 130kW and 210Nm, with the sedan accelerating from 0-100km/h in a claimed 8.9 seconds.

The Seal 6 Touring Premium receives a larger 19kWh Blade Battery, increasing its WLTP electric range to 100km.
It also produces a stronger 163kW and 260Nm, cutting the claimed 0-100km/h time to 8.1 seconds.

The wagon additionally supports DC fast charging at up to 27kW and 6.6kW AC charging, while both models include vehicle-to-load functionality for powering external appliances.

Despite their different body styles, the sedan and Touring share the same 4840mm length, 1875mm width and 2790mm wheelbase.
The wagon is only 10mm taller, measuring 1505mm compared with 1495mm for the sedan.

The biggest difference is behind the rear seats.
The Touring offers 670 litres of boot capacity, increasing to 1535 litres with the second row folded.
The sedan provides 491 litres with all seats in place and 1370 litres with the rear seats folded.

The Touring Premium also receives substantially more equipment than the Essential sedan, helping to explain its $5000 price premium.

Standard features include 18-inch alloy wheels, a panoramic sunroof, powered tailgate, wireless phone charging and a 360-degree camera.
It also gains heated and ventilated synthetic leather front seats, with six-way electric adjustment and memory for the driver and four-way electric adjustment for the passenger.

The Seal 6 Essential sedan instead rides on 17-inch alloy wheels and includes a 12.8-inch infotainment touchscreen, six-speaker audio system, synthetic leather upholstery and a reversing camera.

It remains unclear how much of the Touring Premium’s equipment would be retained by a potential Essential wagon, but removing features such as the panoramic roof, powered tailgate and electrically adjustable seats could allow BYD to push its price further below $40,000.

For now, BYD will monitor demand for the two launch variants before deciding whether to expand the range.